Apparatus for retrieving  and storing tennis balls

ABSTRACT

A ball hopper which allows for the easy retrieval and transportation of tennis balls. The ball hopper includes a basket includes a base and a side wall defining a cavity for storing the tennis ball. Balls are retrieved through ball retrieval channels provided in the base of the basket. The hopper is tipped to position the base of the hopper over the tennis bail. When the hopper is tipped upright the base of the hopper engages the tennis ball and slightly deforms the tennis ball allowing the tennis ball to bass through the retrieval channel. A side wall of the basket includes a door which provides a passageway through which the balls can be dispensed without requiring inversion of the basket. A latch member is provided to secure the door in a closed position. Wheels allow for easy transportation of the basket between locations.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of sports equipment and more particularly to an apparatus for collecting, storing and transporting tennis balls.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Although the game of tennis requires two or more players, practice of the game of tennis typically is done by individuals. In such situations, an opponent is not available to return the played ball. Thus, a large number of balls are typically utilized to avoid having to retrieve or chase down each played balls. An automatic service machine may also be used to serve balls to the individual. Even though use of a large number of balls avoids interrupting the practice each time a ball is played, the played balls still must be retrieved for further use. Retrieving balls is time consuming and tedious and filling the automatic service machine can be cumbersome.

The present invention provides a ball hopper which overcomes the problems presented in the prior art and which provides additional advantages over the prior art, such advantages will become clear upon a reading of the attached specification in combination with a study of the drawings

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Briefly, the present invention discloses a ball hopper which allows for the easy retrieval and transportation of tennis balls. The ball hopper includes a basket defining a cavity for storing the tennis ball. Balls are retrieved through the base of the basket. A side wall of the basket includes a door which provides a passageway through which the balls can be dispensed without requiring inversion of the basket. Wheels allow for easy transportation of the basket between locations.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The organization and manner of the structure and operation of the invention, together with further objects and advantages thereof; may best be understood by reference to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals identify like elements in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the ball hopper;

FIG. 2 is a side elevated view of the ball hopper;

FIG. 3 is a rear elevated view of the ball hopper;

FIG. 4 is a top elevated view of the ball hopper;

FIG. 5 is perspective view of the ball hopper with a door in an open position;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of portion of the ball hopper, illustrating the door and latch;

FIG. 7 is an exploded view of the latch;

FIG. 8 is a side elevated view of a stack of ball hoppers; and

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a stack of ball hoppers.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENT

While the invention may be susceptible to embodiment in different forms, there is shown in the drawings, and herein will be described in detail, a specific embodiment with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered an exemplification of the principles of the invention, and is not intended to limit the invention to that as illustrated and described herein.

As best shown in FIG. 1, the ball hopper 10 generally includes a basket 12, wheels 14 and a handle 16.

The basket 12 includes a base 18 and a sidewall 20 extending upwardly from the base 18 to define a ball cavity 22 for storing tennis balls. As best shown in FIG. 4, the base 18 is generally rectangularly-shaped and includes a front edge 23, a rear edge 24, a left edge 26 and a right edge 28. The sidewall 20 is generally rectangularly-shaped and includes a lower end 30 attached to the base 18 and an upper free edge 32. The sidewall 20 includes a front panel 34 extending upwardly from the front edge 23 of the base 18, a rear panel 36 extending upwardly from the rear edge 24 of the base 18, a left panel 38 extending upwardly from the left edge 26 of the base 18 and a right panel 40 extending upwardly from the right edge 28 of the base 18. As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, the right panel 40 of the sidewall 20 includes a door 42 pivotally mounted to the upper edge 32 of the sidewall 20.

The basket 12 is preferably formed from shaped wires or rails which are secured together to fix the relative positions of the rails. The basket 12 includes a plurality of elongated front-to-rear rails 44, a plurality of side-to-side rails 46, an upper rail 48, the door 42, and corner supports 50.

Each front-to-rear rail 44 includes a central portion 44 a, a front portion 44 b and a rear portion 44 c. The central portions 44 a of the front-to-rear rails 44 are positioned parallel to one another and spaced a pre-determined distance to provide ball retrieval channels 52. The front portion 44 b of each front-to-rear rail 44 is upwardly turned and attached to the upper rail 48 to form the front panel 34 of the sidewall 20. The rear portion 44 c of each front-to-rear rail 44 is upwardly turned and attached to the upper rail 48 to form the rear panel 36 of the sidewall 20.

Each side-to-side rail 46 includes a central portion 46 a, a left portion 46 b, and a right portion 46 c. The central portions 46 a of the side-to side rails 46 are provided over the central portions 44 a of the front-to-rear rails 44. The central portion 46 a of a first side-to-side rail 46 is provided at the front edge 23 of the base 28 and the central portion 46 a of a second side-to-side rail 46 is provided at the rear edge 24 of the base 28. The left portions 46 b of the first and second side-to-side rails 46 are turned upwardly and attached to the upper rail 48 of the basket. The right portions 46 c of the first and second side-to-side rails 46 are turned upwardly and attached to the upper rail 48 of the basket. The right portions 46 c of the first and second side-to-side-rails 46 along with the central portion 44 a of the right most front-to-rear rail 44 and the upper rail 48, define a ball passage 54 through the sidewall 20.

Corner supports 50 extend from the left and right portions 46 b, 46 c of the side-to side-rails 46 to the upper rail 48. Additional corner supports 50 extend from the front and rear portions 44 b, 44 c of the front-to-rear rails 44 to the upper rail 48. The corner supports 50 reduce the openings at the corners of the basket 12 to maintain the balls within the ball cavity 22.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 6, the door 42 is provided by a generally U-shaped frame 56 and support members 58. The generally U-shaped frame 56 includes a base 56 a and first and second legs 56 b extending upwardly from opposite ends of the base 56 a. The free ends 60 of the first and second legs 56 b are attached to the upper rail 48. The support members 58 include generally vertical members 58 a and horizontal members 58 b and extend between the first and second legs 56 b and the base 56 a of the frame 56 to support tennis balls within the cavity 22 as will be described herein.

As best shown in FIG. 6, a latch 62 is provided on the right panel 40 of the side wall 20 to secure the door 42 in a closed position. As best shown in FIG. 7, the latch includes a channel member 80, a tube 82, a catch member 84, a spring 86, a latch handle 88 and a pin 90.

The channel member 80 is secured to the side wall 20 such that the channel member 80 is positioned proximate to the passageway 54 in the right panel 40 of the side wall 20. The channel member 80 defines a channel 92 which receives the catch member 84.

The tube 82 is also secured to the side wall 20 and is spaced from the channel member 80. The tube 82 is generally cylindrically-shaped and includes a spring abutment wall.

The catch member 84 includes a head 94 proximate the front end of the catch member 94 and a cylindrically-shaped extension 96 proximate the rear end of the catch member 94. The head 94 includes a generally planar sliding surface 91, a door abutment corner 89, and a door guiding surface 99. The planar sliding surface 91 mates with the channel 92 of the channel member 80. The door abutment corner 89 includes a first surface 89 a extending generally perpendicular to the planar sliding surface 91 and a second surface 89 b generally perpendicular to the first surface 89 a and 11 to the planar sliding surface 91. The door guiding surface 99 extends outwardly and rearwardly from the forward most end of the second surface 89 b. A pin receiving aperture 97 is provided through the cylindrically-shaped extension 96.

The latch handle 88 is generally U-shaped. The latch handle 88 includes a gripping portion 83 and a sliding portion 85 generally perpendicular to the gripping portion 83. A pin receiving aperture is provided at the free end of the sliding portion 85. The spring 86 defines a spring passageway 87.

Assembly of the latch 62 is as follows. The free end of the sliding portion 85 of the latch handle 88 is passed through the tube 82 and through the spring passageway 87. The pin receiving aperture at the free end of the latch handle 88 is aligned with the pill receiving aperture 97 of the catch member 84. The pin 90 is positioned in aligned pin receiving apertures to secure the latch handle 88 to the catch member 84. The catch member 84 is aligned with the channel member 80 such that the sliding surface of the catch member 84 is positioned within the channel 92 of the channel member 80. Once assembled, a first end of the spring 86 will push against the spring abutment wall of the tube 82 and a second end of the spring 86 will push against the catch member 84 to push the assembled latch handle 88 and catch member 84 is a forward direction.

When in the locked position, the door abutment corner 89 of the catch member 84 is positioned to secure the door 42 in the closed position. Specifically, the second surface 89 b of the door abutment corner 89 will extend over the door 62 when the door is in a closed position to prevent the door from pivoting outwardly. To open the latch 62, the user grasps the gripping portion 83 of the latch handle 88 and pulls the latch handle 88 along with the attached catch member 84 rearwardly to overcome the force of the spring 86. As the latch handle 88 and catch member 84 are pulled rearwardly, the sliding surface 91 of the catch member 84 slides within the channel 92 of the channel member 90 until the second surface 89 b of the door abutment corner 89 clears the door 42 of the basket 12, allowing the door 42 to pivot outwardly.

As best shown in FIG. 3, the handle 16 includes a left support 64, a right support 66 and an extension member 68. The left and right supports 64, 66 are provided by elongated tubular-shaped members. The left and right supports 64, 66 are positioned proximate the rear panel 36 of the sidewall 20 of the basket 12 and extend upwardly from the upper rail 48 of the basket 12. The extension member 68 includes a left leg 68 a, a right leg 68 b, and a gripping member 68 c. A lower end of the left leg 68 a is positioned over the left support 64, a lower end of the right leg 68 b is positioned over the right support 66, and the gripping member 68 c extends between upper ends of the left and right legs 68 a, 68 b.

A first wheel 70 is mounted on the rear panel 36 of the sidewall 20 proximate the base 18 of the basket 12 and a second wheel 72 is mounted on the rear panel 36 of the sidewall 20 proximate the base 18 of the basket 12 and spaced from the first wheel 70.

Balls can be retrieved using the ball hopper 10 as follows. When the base 18 of the basket 12 of the ball hopper 10 is seated against the ground as shown in FIGS. 1-3, the hopper 10 is in a stationary or storage position. The user begins by ensuring that the door 42 is closed and that the latch 62 is the locked position. Then the user stands behind the hopper 10, i.e. proximate the rear panel 36 of the sidewall 20 of the basket 12, and raises or lowers the extension 68 of the handle 16 relative to the left and right supports 64, 66 to adjust the height of the handle 16 to a height appropriate for the user.

Next, the user grasps the gripping member 68 c of the handle 16. The user then pulls the handle 16 in a generally downward and rearward direction to tip the hopper 10 on to the wheels 70, 72, while supporting the ball hopper 10 with the handle 16. The user then rolls the hopper 10 to the location of a ball, and places the base 18 of the basket 12 over the ball. The user then tips the basket 12 forward and the ball will begin to pass through one of the ball retrieval channels 52. When the surface of the ball contacts the front-to-rear rails 44 of the basket 12, the user will gently push forward and downward tipping the hopper back to the stationary or storage position. As the user pushes, the force of the rail 44 against the ball, causes the ball to deform slightly allowing the ball to pass through the retrieval channel 52 and into the cavity 22 of the basket 12. In addition to deformation of the balls, as the user pushes, the rails 44 may also flex away from the ball to enlarge the channel 52 allowing the ball to more easily pass through the retrieval channel 52. After passing through the retrieval channel 52 the ball will expand and thereby be retained within the cavity 22. The user can then again tip the hopper 10 onto the wheels 70, 72 and transport the hopper to another ball location and retrieve another ball in the same manner. As the user continues to retrieve balls, the balls will fill the cavity 22 defined by the basket 12 and balls will be pushed upward toward the upper rail 48 of the basket 12.

Once the user has retrieved all the balls it desires to retrieve, or the basket 12 of the hopper 10 is full, the user can transport the hopper 10 on its wheels to a desired location, for example the automatic ball service machine. The user can then lift the hopper 10 and position the right side of the base 18 proximate the ball bin of the service machine. Once appropriately aligned, the user then grasps the gripping portion 83 of the latch 62 and pulls the gripping member rearwardly to unlatch the latch 62. When the forward most end of the catch member 84 of the latch 62 is rearward of the door 42, the door 42 will be pushed outwardly due to the force of the balls against the door, the passageway 54 will be opened and the balls will exit the ball hopper 10. Use of the door 42, allows the user to easily dispense the collected balls from the hopper 10 to the ball bin of the service machine without requiring the user to invert the ball hopper 10. In addition, as the balls are exiting the ball hopper, the user can utilize the door 42 to assist in directing the balls into the ball bin. Thus the door 42, eliminates the cumbersome process of inverting the ball hopper and reduces the probability of spilling the balls as the ball bin is filled.

Once the basket 12 is emptied, the user pivots the door 42 back to the closed position. As the door is closed, the door 42 will contact the door guiding surface 99 of the latch 62 and the user will again grasp the gripping portion 83 of the latch handle 88 and pull rearwardly on the latch handle 88 to slide the latch handle 88 and catch member 84 rearwardly until the forward most end of the catch member 84 is rearward of the door 42. The door 42 is then positioned over the passageway 54 to close the passageway 54. When the user releases the gripping portion 83 of the latch handle 88, the spring 86 will urge the catch member 84 and latch handle 88 forward to secure the door 42 in the closed position. With the door 42 secured in the closed position, the basket 12 is again ready for retrieval of tennis balls.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the ball hopper 10 can be stacked with other ball hoppers 10 for efficient storage of a stack of ball hoppers 100. The perimeter of the base 18 is smaller than the perimeter of the upper rail 48, providing for an outwardly angled sidewall 20 and handle 16 which allows nesting of the stacked baskets 12. The position of the wheels 70, 72 allows the user to tip the stack 100 and easily transport the stack 100 using the wheels 70, 72. The latch 62 is positioned proximate the upper end of the basket 12 to prevent interference when stacking the hoppers 10. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, when the hoppers 10 are stacked, the latch member 62 of each hopper is spaced from the upper rail 48 of the hopper immediately below. In addition, placement of the latch member 62 proximate the upper end of the basket 12 also prevents interference of the latch 62 with the base 18 of the basket 12. More specifically, the latch 62 does not interfere with the ability of the base 18 from reaching the ground to retrieve the tennis balls and does not interfere when transporting the hopper 10.

Formation of the basket 12 from wire or rails provides for a lightweight basket which can be easily lifted even when filled with tennis balls. The wire can be coated with paint or other materials to provide a weather resistant finish. Although the basket 12 of the invention has been described as being formed from wires or rails, it is to be understood that the basket can be formed from other materials including plastic. In addition, although ball retrieval channels are necessary through the base 18 of the basket 12, the sidewall 20 can be provided by a solid surface.

The door 42 has been shown on the right panel of the basket and is hinged to the top rail 48 of the basket 12 to allow the door to swing upward. It is to be understood that the door 42 can also be provided on the left, front or rear panel. Although the door 42 has been described as providing a portion of the right side panel 40, it is also to be understood that the door 42 can be provided by the entire panel 40.

While preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown and described, it is envisioned that those skilled in the art may devise various modifications of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims. 

1. A ball hopper comprising: a basket including a base defining a ball retrieval channel therethrough and a sidewall extending upwardly from said base, said sidewall defining a passageway and including a door for opening and closing said passageway, said base and said sidewall defining a ball cavity; a handle extending upwardly from said basket; and wherein when said door of said sidewall is moved to an open position, a passageway is provided through said sidewall.
 2. The ball hopper as defined in claim 1, wherein said door is pivotally attached to said remainder of said sidewall.
 3. The ball hopper as defined in claim 2, wherein said side wall includes an upper edge and said door pivots about a portion of said upper edge of said side wall.
 4. The ball hopper as defined in claim 1, wherein said side wall is outwardly angled and a perimeter of said basket proximate said base is smaller than a perimeter of said basket proximate said upper edge.
 5. The hopper as defined in claim 1, further comprising a plurality of wheels mounted to said basket.
 6. The ball hopper as defined in claim 1, wherein said basket is supported by said wheels when the ball hopper is transported and wherein said basket is not supported by said wheels when the ball hopper is in a storage position.
 7. The ball hopper as defined in claim 1, wherein a height of said handle can be adjusted.
 8. The ball hopper as defined in claim 1, wherein said basket is formed from wire.
 9. The ball hopper as defined in claim 1, further comprising a latch for securing said door in a closed position.
 10. The ball hopper as defined in claim 1, wherein said latch includes a catch member and a spring for biasing said catch member over said door.
 11. The ball hopper as defined in claim 1, wherein said latch member is position proximate an upper end of said basket. 